What were homes in the ancient Maya civilisation like?

The Maya built many temples, palaces, causeways, schools and marketplaces.

They took millions of hours to build, from cutting and moving the stone to finishing the decoration.

The royals and nobles lived in the ceremonial centre and the ordinary people further out.

The temples and palaces were mainly made of stone. Limestone in particular was available across much of the Maya region. Limestone is soft when first cut and hardens with age.

Fired bricks, volcanic rock and sandstone were used in areas where there was no limestone. The limestone was burned to make cement or plaster.

Wood was used for beams and poles, and thatch for huts, covered with adobe, which was mud strengthened straw.

The Maya did not use the wheel. They moved stone on logs or with pulleys.

Ordinary Maya homes were not built on platforms like the city temples and palaces but on ground level. They were built in an oval shape, from wooden poles with clay and mud (wattle and daub) or stone walls (which was rare) and a thatch roof, or plants, to keep the rain and snow out.

They had one room which they all shared, including the parents, sometimes with a wall to divide the house. They would sleep in the back part.

There might have been a hearth (fireplace) to cook on and every house had pottery. Beds were made from sapling rods with a mat placed on top.

They often buried family underneath or near the house.

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